Two major telecommunication networks have evolved worldwide. The first is a network of telephone systems in the form of the Public Switched Telephone System (PSTN). This network was initially designed to carry voice communication, but later also adapted to transport data. The second is a network of computer systems in the form of the Internet. The Internet has been designed to carry data but also increasingly being used to transport voice and multimedia information. Computers implementing telephony applications have been integrated into both of these telecommunication networks to provide enhanced communication services. For example on the PSTN, computer telephony integration has provided more functions and control to the POTS (Plain Old Telephone Services). On the Internet, computers are themselves terminal equipment for voice communication as well as serving as intelligent routers and controllers for a host of terminal equipment.
The Internet is a worldwide network of IP networks communicating under TCP/IP. Specifically, voice and other multimedia information are transported on the Internet under the VoIP (Voice-over-IP) protocol, and under the H.323 standard that has been put forward for interoperability. Another important implementation of VOIP protocol is SIP (“Session Initiation Protocol”.)
The integration of the PSTN and the IP networks allows for greater facility in automation of voice applications by leveraging the inherent routing flexibility and computing accessibility in the IP networks.
Interactive Voice Response (“IVR”) is a technology that automates interaction with telephone callers. Enterprises are increasingly turning to IVR to reduce the cost of common sales, service, collections, inquiry and support calls to and from their company.
Historically, IVR solutions have used pre-recorded voice prompts and menus to present information and options to callers, and touch-tone telephone keypad entry to gather responses. Modern IVR solutions also enable input and responses to be gathered via spoken words with voice recognition.
IVR solutions enable users to retrieve information including bank balances, flight schedules, product details, order status, movie show times, and more from any telephone. Additionally, IVR solutions are increasingly used to place outbound calls to deliver or gather information for appointments, past due bills, and other time critical events and activities.
One issue that arises from an IVR is that a record needs to be made for certain type of transactions and kept as an archive. For example, an insurance company may deploy an IVR to facilitate its policy holders to conduct via phone transactions processes such as renewing, updating or canceling of insurance policies. As a form of protection and to meet regulatory requirements, records of such transactions will need to be made and maintained as archives so that they are available for audit and verification should the need arise.
Another example for the need to keep archives of phone transactions is in an IVR for health care services that allows patients to interact with the doctors via the IVR by phone. The resulting IVR transactions including phone conversations will form part of the records and archives maintained by the health care service provider.
When the IVRs are maintained and serviced from a premise of the insurance company or the health care provider, authorized access to the recordings and archives are more easily controlled and confidentiality maintained. However, the IVRs are often deployed on a hosted facility maintained by a third-party hosted facility provider. As a subscriber to the hosted IVR service, the subscriber such as the insurance company also has the need to keep the recordings and archives confidential from the hosting third party.
The usual solution for keeping online transactions confidential is to conduct the transactions using a secure transport layer (SSL) in a HTTPS protocol. The recording can be confidentially made at one of the endpoints. However, this solution only provides secure transport between the endpoints. Since the recordings are to be made at the IVR maintained at a third-party hosted facility, they can not be kept confidential from the third-party hosted facility provider.
Thus, there is a need to provide secure recording of transaction and phone conversations during an IVR call, especially when the IVR is being provided from a hosted facility.